25 College Sports Logos With Hidden Meanings

A handful of schools, conferences, bowls and other entities in college sports are downright subliminal with their logo designs. Look closely at the following 25 logos and you’ll stumble upon more than the eye can initially see.

You have seen the Tostitos Fiesta Bowl logo for years, but have you ever noticed that the two “t’s” in “Tostitos” are people sharing a chip over a bowl of salsa formed by the “i”? That’s quite the subliminal advertising.

Something about the Palouse must lend itself to integrating a school’s three-letter acronym into the logo design. Eastern Washington’s integration of “EWU” into its eagle’s wings and tail is almost identical to what Wazzu did with its cougar logo.

The Mavericks’ logo is actually three letters rolled into one. There’s a “U” (represented by the black band), an “N” (the red band) and an “O” (the two bands combined). Additionally, the ends of the bands are pointed to signify a bull’s horns.

Take away the “La” on the left side and the “ech” on the right (a la the Bulldogs’ football helmets) and you’re left with a block “T” transposed onto an outline of the state of Louisiana - forming a natural “L” and, subsequently, an interlocking “LT” combination.

Once made up primarily of member schools on the Pacific Coast (along with Arizona and Arizona State) shown by the wave above the “12”, the Pac-12 now counts two “mountainous” members in Utah and Colorado among its ranks - an expansion reflected in the peak at the center of the new logo.

Hoping to strike it rich with something more clever and less common than an ordinary “C,” Charlotte has had the letter portrayed as an arm swinging a pickax (alluding to the 49ers nickname) since 1998.

The program formerly known as the “Flying Dutchmen” has reason to be proud of the gender equality demonstrated on its logo, one that contains both a lioness (in white in the foreground) and a male lion (in blue in the background).

Imagine Sacramento State’s logo in uber conceptual terms a la a constellation. The “S” part of it is supposed to be the body of a hornet (the school’s mascot) with a stinger on the bottom end, with two “wings” protruding from the sides. Too bad it looks more like a “nondescript earth worm eating through an apple core.”

Unveiled prior to the 2013-2014 athletics season, the Sun Belt’s new logo contains a blue band representing the “belt” - made up of four parts representing the conference’s key principles of ambitious, authentic, loyal and adventurous - and the horizon at daybreak representing the “sun.”

The America East redesigned its logo in 2013 and brought plenty of meaning to the new look. The three white stripes on the “A” not only form an “E,” they also symbolize the three pillars of the conference: Academic achievement, athletic excellence and leadership on and off the field.

A mere four laces - instead of eight - appear on the CFB playoff logo’s football, representing the number of participating teams. Here’s hoping that more laces (i.e. more teams) are added to the football in coming years.